This Vegan Tiramisu is a decadent dessert with layers of coffee rum soaked sponge and a creamy vegan mascarpone. This is simple recipe using store cupboard ingredients and no fussy steps. Great for dinner parties as it can be made a day ahead or the morning of.
What is vegan tiramisu made of?
Vegan tiramisu is made from vanilla cake fingers soaked in coffee with the option of rum or marsala. The vegan mascarpone is incredibly versatile and can be made from either silken tofu, soaked cashews, vegan cream cheese or coconut cream. And of course it wouldn’t be a tiramisu without a thick dusting of cocoa powder.
Is there a vegan alternative to mascarpone?
Vegan mascarpone is incredibly quick to make. Just four simple ingredients – vegan cream cheese, coconut milk, sugar and vanilla are used to make this mascarpone equivalent. And with this recipe you don’t have to rely on finding silken tofu or soaking raw cashew nuts. Use coconut milk from a can rather than a carton. Chill both cans of full fat coconut milk in the fridge for a minimum of 2 hours before making this recipe. Use full fat to ensure the mascarpone is thick and creamy, this isn’t the recipe to be thinking of calories! On opening the cans only use the thick solid white part of the coconut milk.
Vegan cream cheese is great in replicating the sharp, zesty flavour of real mascarpone. Whisk the cream cheese, coconut milk, sugar and vanilla until you have a thick and luxurious mascarpone then cover and keep in the fridge until ready to use.
How do you make vegan ladyfingers?
There is no strange ingredient or tiresome process to this vegan tiramisu recipe (I can’t be the only one who hates soaking cashews?). Unfortunately there is no vegan alternative to savoiardi ladyfingers available in the UK, so you will have to make your own vanilla sponge. The upside is that this is really simple; the sponge cake is a one bowl recipe and requires only 10 minutes prep. So you can spend more time eating and binge watching latest your Netflix addiction. Like the Grandma I am, I am behind the rest of the nation and still on Squid Game.
To make the plant based ladyfingers, I’ve used vegan buttermilk, which is just soy milk and lemon juice. This makes the sponge soft yet still firm enough to absorb the espresso mixture. Dip only one side of each sponge ladyfinger into the espresso mixture and place into the dish. I say only one side as this will stop you ending up with a soggy limp sponge. Spread over half of the vegan mascarpone. Dip the remaining ladyfingers in coffee and layer onto the mascarpone. There will be some cake leftover, not to worry, just use for another yummy recipe. Yes that means more dessert for you.
Leave a comment and let me know how you get on making this Vegan Tiramisu. I would love to see your creations over on instagram!
more vegan desserts
Vegan Tiramisu
Ingredients
For the Ladyfingers
- 230 mls unsweetened soy milk
- 1.5 tsp lemon juice
- 300 g plain flour sieved
- 2 tbsp cornstarch
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 120 g caster sugar
- 230 mls sunflower oil
- 1 tsp vanilla bean paste / essence
- 30 g cocoa powder
For the Vegan Mascarpone
- 375 g vegan cream cheese
- 175 g caster sugar
- 2 x 400ml tins coconut milk 300g white cream only, chilled in fridge for minimum 2hrs *see notes
- 1 tsp vanilla
For the Espresso mixture
- 125 mls strong coffee ideally espresso
- 3 tbsp dark rum optional
Instructions
- Pre heat the oven to 350F/ 180C / 160C fan. Grease a 9×9 inch baking tin.
- Make the vegan buttermilk by mixing the soy milk and lemon juice and then leave to one side.
- In a mixing bowl, add the sieved flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, salt and caster sugar. Mix well and create a well in the centre. Pour in the vegan buttermilk, sunflower oil and vanilla.
- Gently fold the mixture until just combined, then pour out into the square baking tin and smooth over with a spatula.
- Bake for 30 minutes. The cake is ready when it is golden, springy to the touch and pulling away from the sides of the tin. Leave to cool for 25 minutes in the tin and then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
- Meanwhile make the vegan mascarpone. Add the vegan cream cheese, coconut milk (creamy white part only), sugar and vanilla to a large mixing bowl. Use an electric whisk to beat the mixture until light and creamy, approximately 2 minutes. Cover and leave to cool in fridge.
- Mix the espresso and dark rum in a jug. Cut the vanilla sponge into rectangles approximately 1.5 inches wide.
- Use an 8×8 cake dish with tall sides. Dip only one side of each sponge ladyfinger into the espresso mixture and place into the dish. Spread over half of the vegan mascarpone. Dip the remaining ladyfingers in coffee and layer onto the mascarpone. Finish with the remaining mascarpone. Place the dish in the fridge to chill for a minimum of 4 hours or overnight.
- Remove from the fridge and finish with thick dusting of cocoa powder. Slice and enjoy immediately.
Notes
- The tiramisu can be made the day beforehand and stored in the fridge if you want to save time.
- If you’re in the UK, I recommend using Coconut Pride coconut milk as it is the most solid when chilled.